Tag Archives: PAC

Tyabb Airshow

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Well, how quickly have another 2 years sped by? It’s time again for the bi-annual Tyabb Airshow, to be held this year on Sunday 11 March 2018. Gates open at 08.30 and the air display starts at 11.30. The theme of this year’s show is ‘War & Peace’ and there will be many of the old warbirds, for which Tyabb is famous, on display on the ground and in the air. In addition, many Tyabb hangar owners will be opening up their doors to show aircraft old and new.

The airshow this year is sponsored by BP and Eastlink, as well as the Peninsula Aero Club, which has a proud tradition of supporting local community service clubs from the proceeds of their airshows.

The 2018 Airshow is no different with the major beneficiary to be Riding for the Disabled (RDA). RDA Victoria is a not-for-profit organisation that enables individuals with a variety of disabilities, ages and backgrounds to develop independence, a sense of freedom and to reach their equestrian goals, through adaptive coaching techniques and equipment.

The Aero Club will also be supporting the Tyabb CFA, a vital service for all of us, the Mt Eliza Lions Club which exists to support the comminity through a variety of initiatives and the Tyabb Football & Cricket Clubs which serve local youth.

You can save $5 per head by purchasing your tickets on line by clicking here. This will also save you having to queue at the gate to get into what is always a very popular show.

Foxbat Australia will have several aircraft on static display, including the Kelpie and Vixxen, as well as the evergreen Foxbat – come along to Hangar 11 and say hello – we are just across the grass to the south of the main club house.

Tyabb Airport upgrades

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Tyabb FlypastOver the next few months, Tyabb Airport will be undergoing some significant works to repair and improve the main apron, taxi-ways, drainage and runway lighting. Money for these works was granted through the regional airports development fund – other airports near to Melbourne which have also benefitted significantly from the development fund include Coldstream and Lethbridge.

Tyabb is home to the Peninsula Aero Club (PAC) – a club and school open to anyone interested in flying, whether as a social or flying member. Current PAC membership stands at almost 600. On pretty well any sunny day, families can be seen picnicking on the grass in front of the club house, watching the aircraft taking off and landing. PAC organises the bi-annual Tyabb Airshow, the last of which was held in March 2014, with an attendance of well over 5,000. Plane Crazy Down Under has produced a video of the 2014 Airshow – details and ordering information can be found here: Plane Crazy Tyabb Airshow DVD

The airport is also home to a number of other aviation related industries, including service and maintenance facilities, as well as to Cubcrafters Australia, agents for the Carbon Cub, and of course to Foxbat Australia!

Of particular interest is The Old Aeroplane Company (this is a link to very nice current video), which is based on the western side of the airport. Owned and operated by Judy Pay, The Old Aeroplane Company not only restores and services older aircraft (as well as new ones), it also houses a unique collection of warbirds and other interesting aircraft – here’s a link to a Flickr gallery of some of them: Old Aeroplane Company pictures . You can visit – but phone to check first to ensure they are open: 03 5977 3355. Here’s another article and pictures about the recovery and restoration of a Curtiss P-40F Warhawk, one of the gems of the Old Aeroplane collection.

For those who want to fly in, Tyabb Airport is one of the few regional airports offering both Avgas and 98 Octane Mogas at the bowser. Daily and overnight parking is available.

If you’re visiting come over and visit Foxbat and Cubcrafters at Hangar 11 – the first hangar due south of the PAC club house.

Flaps podcast

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Flaps Podcast

Flaps Podcast

I must confess – I am a bit of a podcast addict. I subscribe to all sorts of podcasts including comedy, short & long audio-stories, plays & drama, science fiction, and news. Unfortunately, good aviation audio podcasts seem to be few and far between, but one of my favourites is Flaps Podcast.

I like it because each issue is reasonably short – about 30 minutes long – and always leaves you wanting to hear more at the end. The downside is that some episodes lately seem to be very UK-centric, although earlier issues (for which they won Sony and New York Radio podcast awards) are much more general in their coverage and so overall more interesting. Every episode includes the ‘Pablo Mason Minute’ in fact usually about 3-4 times that long – where Pablo, an ex-RAF jet pilot and Squadron Leader recounts some specific flying experience, often quite hilariously.

One episode in September 2011, and its companion ‘Flaps Extended‘, was particularly interesting – they covered an interview (in both short and extended form) with Manuel Queiroz, who flew an RV-6 round the world. He was quite a low time pilot until he did the flight – an inspiration to us all. Click here for Manuel’s website ‘Chasing the Morning Sun‘, which has all the details of his flight.

There is an Australian aviation podcast called Plane Crazy Down Under but most episodes are well over an hour – sometimes over two hours – and are just too long for me. I’m usually ready to switch off after 40 minutes. If they broke up the episodes into shorter lengths and published them more often, I think that would suit people better. And maybe if they included an interview with Foxbat Australia along with all their other aircraft manufacturer/importer segments, it would be nice…….

Plane Crazy Down Under recently completed the DVD of the recent Tyabb Airshow (see my earlier blog post here) which is now available from Peninsula Aero Club by calling 03 5977 4406 with your credit card number.

Do you know any good aviation podcasts – or blogs?

The Ercoupe – a unique aeroplane

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The Ercoupe was first manufactured in the late 1930’s by a company called Engineering and Research Corporation (ERCO). In one form or another, it continued in production until 1970 by which time over five and a half thousand had been built.

ErcoupeThe Ercoupe is unique in at least three main ways:

– it is truly spin proof
– it was the fist mass manufactured aircraft to have a nose wheel (as opposed to a tail wheel)
– it has no rudder pedals; steering on the ground and in the air is achieved solely through movement of the steering wheel-like control yokes

Even today, the Ercoupe remains a popular aircraft and many have been restored and maintained to near-new standards. Some of the models qualify for Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) status under current regulations and are an excellent, safe and relatively inexpensive way to enjoy flying.

Here’s a link to a YouTube video about the aircraft, owned by Jack Vevers, a member of the Antique Aeroplane Association of Australia (AAAA), and a leading member of the Peninsula Aero Club (PAC) at Tyabb airport:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcZZnXlpc0A&feature=youtu.be

PS – You might just catch a glimpse of a Foxbat wing and strut during one of the air-to-air sequences. The Foxbat makes a great photo-ship. Watch this space!

Tyabb – magnificent airshow

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Tyabb14 (120 of 137) copyPeninsula Aero Club celebrated ‘A Salute to Veterans’ with an airshow on Sunday 9th March. For once, the weather was perfect – high 20’s to low 30’s with unbroken sunshine. I am told over 10,000 people came to see the (mainly) old warbirds flying in formations of all kinds. There were several more modern aerobatic stunt pilots to thrill the crowd. The finishing display was a paired fly past – in fact several – by a WWII Mustang and the current jet fighter in service with the RAAF, the Hornet. There will be an official DVD of the show available soon, made by Southern Skies Media. Copies can be pre-ordered through the Peninsula Aero Club – here’s a link to their website, which has contact details: Peninsula Aero Club Meanwhile, the whet your appetite even further, here’s a YouTube video with some photos which capture the event: Tyabb Airshow, 2014